Robert Guillaume Narrations
The Lion King (Read-Along) (Narration as Rafiki) *''"Welcome to the Pride Lands, home to some of the most glorious animals in Africa. I am Rafiki, and I am here to tell you the story of one special lion who lives here––a lion who holds a very dear place in my heart. You can read along with me in your book. Every time you hear this sound…you will know it is time to turn the page. Let us begin now."'' *''"Every morning, as the sun peeks over the horizon, a giant rock formation catches the first rays of light. This is Pride Rock, home to my good friend King Mufasa and his lovely wife, Queen Sarabi. On this particular morning, animals from all over the Pride Lands had journeyed to Pride Rock to honor the birth of their newborn cub, Simba."'' *''"As part of the celebration, I had a special duty. I cracked open a gourd, dipped my finger inside and made a mark on Simba's forehead. Then I lifted the future king up high for all to see. The elephants trumpeted with their trunks, the monkeys jumped up and down and the zebras stamped their hooves with happiness."'' *''"Not far from the ceremony, in a cave at the backside of Pride Rock, a scraggly lion with a black mane grumbled. Moments later, Mufasa appeared at the doorway to the cave. Zazu, Mufasa's trusted advisor, also appeared. And with that, Scar stalked out of the cave."'' *''"Before long, Simba grew into a healthy, playful young cub. Early one morning, he and Mufasa climbed to the top of Pride Rock. As they looked out at the rising sun, Mufasa pointed at the light beams that stretched across the Pride Lands. Simba scanned the horizon and noticed a dark spot in the distance."'' *''"Later, as Simba headed down the path, he ran into Scar. Scar looked slyly at the young cub."'' *''"When Simba returned home, he found his friend Nala and her mother Sarafina, visiting Sarabi. The mothers gave permission for the youngsters to go, as long as Zazu went with them. Simba and Nala raced across the Pride Lands in an effort to lose the watchful bird. They led him through many herds of animals until they finally lost him."'' *''"Once the cubs were free of Zazu, Simba pounced on Nala, then Nala flipped Simba onto his back. They tumbled down a hill and landed in a dark ravine littered with elephant skulls and bones. Simba looked around and gasped. Before the cubs could explore any farther, Zazu tracked them down."'' *''"Suddenly, three hyenas slithered out of the eye socket of an elephant skull. Frightened, Simba, Nala and Zazu jumped back. It was Banzai, his partner, Shenzi and the always-laughing Ed. Banzai sneered. Zazu tried to lead the cubs to safety, but Banzai grabbed him by the tail and plopped him down. The hyenas circled their prey, licking their chops."'' *''"While the hyenas argued about who was going to eat whom, Simba, Nala and Zazu quietly slipped away. But the hyenas weren't distracted for long. They gave chase, and Simba and Nala had to run as fast as they could. Finally, they tried hiding behind some elephant bones. Just when it looked as if it were all over for the young cubs, Mufasa appeared and sent the hyenas flying with a swipe of his big paw. The hyenas slinked away, and Mufasa glared at Simba."'' *''"Mufasa sent Nala and Zazu home so he could talk privately to his father. Simba peered up at his father. Mufasa looked up at the stars."'' *''"Meanwhile, the hyenas received another visitor; an angry Scar showed up at their lair. Scar warned the hyenas to be prepared. Banzai laughed. Scar looked at him with danger in his eyes."'' *''"The following day, Scar invited Simba to join him in the gorge. When they arrived, Scar turned to his young nephew. Moments after he left, Scar signaled the hyenas, who chased a herd of wildebeests directly towards Simba. From a distance, Mufasa noticed the rising dust. Scar appeared quickly at his side. Without waiting a second, Mufasa took off to save his young son."'' *''"Mufasa plunged into the gorge and battled his way through the oncoming wildebeests. He found Simba, grabbed him by the nape of his neck and put him on a nearby ledge. Suddenly, Mufasa was knocked back into the stampede. Desperately, he tried to climb up another ledge from which Scar stood, looking down on him. Scar reached for Mufasa and pulled him close enough to whisper in his ear. Then Scar let go of Mufasa and he fell to his death. Simba peered over the ridge just as his father disappeared beneath the thundering stampede."'' *''"Later, Scar found Simba over his father's body, sobbing. Simba sobbed harder. Simba did as he was told, unaware that his uncle's hyena friends had been ordered to finish him off. Scar returned to Pride Rock to take over the throne."'' *''"Meanwhile, Simba plodded across the savannah without any food or water. It wasn't long before he fainted under the hot sun. As the vultures circled overhead, a big-hearted warthog named Pumbaa stumbled upon the young lion. He turned to his trusty pal, a fast-talking meerkat named Timon. But Pumbaa scooped Simba up anyway, and carried him to safety."'' *''"When Simba awoke, the first thought that sprang to his mind was his father's death. Timon taught him about Hakuna Matata, which means no responsibilities, no worries. And that is exactly what Simba did. He stayed in the jungle with Pumbaa and Timon a long, long time, and grew into a very big lion. But eventually, he got homesick. One night, he looked up at the stars and recalled the words his father had told him long ago."'' *''"The next day, Pumbaa was stalked and chased by a lioness. Simba came to his rescue. But after wrestling with the lioness, who easily flipped him onto his back, he realized that she was his old friend. Simba yelled at the heavens."'' *''"Simba didn't believe he could challenge Scar to the throne, so he stayed in the jungle with Nala and his new friends. But I knew the time had come for Simba to take his place in the Circle of Life, and I headed for the jungle. When Simba saw me, he was surprised."'' *''"I led Simba to a reflecting pool. When he looked into the water, he saw a lion. The ghost of Mufasa magically appeared."'' *''"Encouraged by his father's words, Simba returned to Pride Rock. Nala, Pumbaa and Timon followed. When Simba arrived, he found the land bare and dry. The hyenas were in control, and Scar was shouting at Simba's mother. Sarabi turned to Scar."'' *''"Suddenly, a flash of lightning revealed the edge of Pride Rock and there stood Simba. Scar jumped back. But Scar forced Simba to say, in front of all the lions, that he had caused his father's death. Scar smirked. Simba backed up against the ledge. Lightning struck again, setting fire to the dry brush of the Pride Lands."'' *''"Simba, knowing the truth, leapt on Scar. Nala and the other lionesses joined the battle. Through the smoke and flames of the brushfire, Simba spotted Scar trying to escape and he ran after the old lion. Scar pleaded with his nephew. Scar started to slink off, but then he turned and lunged one last time at Simba. Simba moved quickly and flipped Scar over the ledge, where a pack of hyenas were waiting hungrily."'' *''"Limping badly, Simba climbed up to the very top of Pride Rock. He let out a magnificent roar as he looked out over his kingdom. Before long, Pride Rock flourished again. Nala remained by Simba's side, and soon they had their own newborn cub. With all their friends around including Zazu, Pumbaa and Timon, a new celebration of life took place. After making a mark on the forehead of the young cub, I held him up for all the kingdom to see."'' The Making of 'The Lion King' (1994 Documentary) *''"In the past 10 years, a new generation of artists has made its mark on the history of Disney animation, transporting audiences into worlds full of enchantment and delight. They rejuvenated and expanded on the tradition started in 1937, when Walt Disney dazzled the world with the first feature-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This success was followed by Pinocchio and Fantasia, which gave birth to many more amazing sights and sounds. In the following years, Disney produced a range of animated movies with stories that could stand a test of time. Hi! I'm Robert Guillaume. As an actor, I've played many roles. But before The Lion King, I had never been a character in a Disney film. Well, let me tell you, it's an opportunity any actor would love. It's a chance to become a part of history, because the stories are timeless. In The Lion King, a lion cub tries to follow in the pawprints of a great lion king, like this one. Can he do it or not? That is the age-old question. We've come to this animal preserve to show you some of the beasts and a lot of the beauty which inspired this movie. You'll meet the talented actors who joined me in doing the voices, the creative artists who turn these voices into wild and wonderful characters."'' *''"And the highly-acclaimed composers and lyricists who wrote tunes I'm sure you'll be humming for years to come. Welcome to the making of Walt Disney Pictures' The Lion King."'' *''"Set in the vast African savanna, The Lion King is a story about growing up and taking our place in the world, about the wisdom we inherit from the generations that came before us. And how we must sometimes discover on our own, the value of that wisdom."'' *''"Directors Rob Minkoff and Roger Allers guided the team of story artists and writers towards the film which took shape as all Disney animated films do––on storyboards. Scenes, gags and lines of dialogue get worked out in front of the audience of fellow artists. The Disney artists call this process pitching the boards."'' *''"By imagining and reimagining the story, the artists gradually discovered what would make The Lion King unique."'' *''"For the voices of the characters, the directors cast actors whose performances could spark the animator's imagination. I am the voice of Rafiki, an old baboon who's like a high priest or a wise man of the animal kingdom. James Earl Jones provides the voice of the great King Mufasa, who rules the animal kingdom from Pride Rock."'' *''"Home Improvement's Jonathan Taylor Thomas plays Simba as a cub, whose cat's curiosity gets him in trouble."'' *''"Matthew Broderick is the voice of Adult Simba, who just wants to live a carefree life away from all responsibility."'' *''"Moira Kelly of The Cutting Edge and Chaplin is the voice of Simba's girlfriend, Nala, who convinces her childhood friend to return to the pride."'' *''"Broadway veterans Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella portray fast-talking meerkat and comic cozy warthog Pumbaa, who teach Simba about the joys of the jungle."'' *''"And Academy Award winner Jeremy Irons oozes evil as the king's bad brother, Scar."'' *''"And then, there's the hyenas."'' *''"With the help of Minkoff and Allers, the performers found the character in their voices or was it the other way around?"'' *''"This magnificent creature has a wing span of seven feet and talons the size of human hands. It's an African eagle. It seems as if everything about Africa, from its one-of-a-kind animals to its breathtaking scenery, is larger than life. Now turn the Disney artists loose, with all of Africa to inspire them and what you're going to get is an explosion of color and characters unlike any you've experienced in a Disney film. You can see and hear Africa in every frame of The Lion King as it accounted itself as a character in the story. Here's a bird's eye view of how Africa inspired by the Disney artists. In November 1991, a group of Disney artists traveled to East Africa where they found a world teaming with life, sound and color and a landscape that seemed immense."'' *''"The responsibility of distilling all of Africa into a cohesive design for The Lion King felt to production designer Andy Gaskill."'' *''"Gaskill's exhaustive study of different painting styles eventually led the Disney artists to kind of enhanced naturalism."'' *''"As the picture got further into production, the filmmakers carefully coordinated the artistic elements into a unified design. Many of those elements, from the color of the sky to a galloping wildebeest were inspired by Africa. From the ongoing alchemy of filmmaking Africa was a mother lode of ideas. Other elements of Africa can be found in The Lion King's richly textured underscore, written by renowned composer Hans Zimmer, whose credits include Rain Man, Driving Miss Daisy and Thelma and Louise."'' *''"African choirs conducted by vocalist Lebo M. helped to shape the underscore. Just as Andy Gaskill researched the visual elements of the film, Zimmer spent two years looking for the right palette of musical sounds for The Lion King."'' *''"The result---a musical tapestry which complements the visual art, and a design for the film that you could call colorful, mystic, majestic, dramatic, or you could just call it Africa."'' *''"Making a Disney animated film takes years of work by hundreds of very creative people. It might begin way off stream, with a trickle of an idea––what if we did a film about the animal kingodm, about a young lion who has to struggle with growing up. As this trickle moves downstream, writers put the idea into words, story artists sketch pictures to match the words, actors perform the words and animators put the performances. And the directors, producers, editors, musicians, computer artists and others each flooding the film with the ideas included the energy of their own. And what you've got is as much a force of nature as it is a film. To bring the most compelling elements of nature of The Lion King, the first step for the animators was to observe the animals they would be animating."'' *''"The world's famous wildlife expert Jim Fowler came out to the studio and brought a few friends who made quite an impression on the artists."'' *''"Animator Ruben Aquino did a detailed study of the way various animals moved. His work became a standard reference for all of the animators on the film. And his drawing of this wildebeest became a herd of hundreds with the help of Disney's innovative CGI, computer generated imagery, which combines hand-drawn animation with computer technology. Scott Johnston explains how they did it." *"''The computer might be able to keep track of hundreds of stampeding animals, but only a performer with a pencil can combine movement and emotion to bring a believable character to life." *''"Ellen Woodbury's challenge was having to think like a bird."'' *''"The animators are cast like actors to match the move characters akin to their own personalities. And why do you think this guy was picked to animate the hyenas?"'' *''"The directors Minkoff and Allers asked a lot of their artists. And like the actors they are, all the animators asked for was an audience."'' *''"How do you measure the greatness of a hero? Well, one way is to size up the fall. If the bad guy is really bad, the hero has to be especially great to defeat him. No, I'm not going to tell you everything that happens to Simba in The Lion King, but I will say this––Simba is going to have to be one very heroic lion to deal with his uncle Scar."'' *''"This uncle of his is worse than a castle full of wicked stepmothers."'' *''"And to make matters even worse for the little lion who would be king, Simba thinks this conniving carnivore is his friend."'' *''"The character of Scar resulted from the kind of collaboration you can only see in Disney animation, between one of the world's most talented actors, Jeremy Irons and one of Disney's most talented animators––Andreas Deja."'' *''"Deja began by observing the feline qualities he could use in creating a really bad cat."'' *''"But it was Jeremy Irons' readings of Scar's lines, which really brought the character to life."'' *''"In The Lion King, the music entrances your ear every bit as much as the images delight your eye. Imagine for a second that you could see the world from young Simba's point of view. What would it look like? Every sight, every sound, every smell would be brand new. Anything would be possible. And one day, you would rule it all. And how do you say that with a song?"'' *''"For The Lion King, a rock-and-roll legend teamed up with an Academy Award-winning lyricist to provide this and other key pieces to the storytelling puzzle. And in the process, create one of the most memorable collections of songs in Disney animation."'' *''"Elton John and Tim Rice wrote five spellbinding songs for The Lion King over a two-year period."'' *''"In this number, little Simba looks forward to the day when he can have everything in his own way."'' *''"Here, directors Minkoff and Allers present a song called Hakuna Matata, which was inspired by a Swahili saying."'' *''"Everyone who worked with him was astonished at the speed with which Elton John could turn out a tune."'' *''"The first song Elton John wrote was the film's love song."'' *''"But the song that had to capture the essence of the story did just that right from the start."'' *''"The artists who gave life to The Lion King are a part of a great succession of dreamers who create the Disney animated films. Who knows, maybe a young boy or girl will see this film and be inspired by a dream of their own, and some great and future achievement will find its beginnings in The Lion King."'' Category:Narrations